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LOCATION: The Toronto Ferry Docks, at the foot of Bay St. and Queens Quay

PRICE: $3.50

Summer is fading fast, and there are fewer and fewer days remaining to dine al fresco on park benches and city patios.

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But the cooler weather doesn’t discourage Toronto’s hotdog vendors from pedalling their fare. In fact, some say the nip in the air helps carry the scent of grilling dogs to better tempt hungry Torontonians to their carts.

Last year, The Dish investigated the calorie content of the all-beef hot dogs served toasty hot on busy street corners.

It wasn’t much of a surprise to find the street meat was high in fat and loaded with salt.

With the advice of a longtime hotdog vendor, we tested the hotdog after topping it with the most popular garnishes: ketchup, mustard, relish, pickles and fresh tomato slices. This loaded-up dog had 560 calories, 24 grams of fat and 2,239 mg of sodium — just shy of the maximum recommended daily sodium allotment.

This year, we decided to look into the veggie dog offered alongside the meaty franks. Almost all Toronto vendors sell Yves veggie dogs and many hotdog aficionados say the vegetarian wieners sold on the street are supremely tasty.

(One wonders if cooking veggie dogs on a grill that is forever basting in sausage juices helps improve their taste.)

This time around, the dog was tested plain. In its toasted egg bun, it clocks in at 382 calories, 8 grams of fat and 1,108 mg of sodium.

At first glance, it appears the veggie version trumps the all-beef dog from a calorie perspective.

But registered dietitian Zannat Reza points out the veggie dog weighs about 130 grams less than the all-beef frank. And, if we add on the same toppings — a tablespoon each of ketchup, mustard and relish and a few slices of pickles — the sodium soars up 575 mg, making the total sodium content 12 per cent more than your body needs in a day.

If you are a vegetarian, of course you will order the veggie dog when craving city street meat.

And getting a veggie dog does offer some health benefits. It’s a little lower in calories, fat and sodium. It also doesn’t have the same health risks as its beefy cousins.

Research has linked eating processed meats, such as hotdogs and deli meats, with an increased risk of heart disease and some cancers, including colorectal cancer.

The Canadian Cancer Society suggests saving processed meats for a special occasion and recommends trying a veggie dog instead of a beef dog at your next backyard barbecue.

Still, Reza, who reviewed the beef dog last year, has the same advice for the veggie version.

“Vegetarian items seem to automatically get a health halo,” she says. “But like a meat hotdog, the veggie dog is still processed food.”

Veggie dogs are made with stabilizers, natural and artificial flavourings and lots of sodium — which take away the nutritional benefits of plain, unadulterated tofu. Their high sodium content also means veggie dogs should be considered a rare treat.

“Like a meat hotdog,” Reza continues, “a veggie dog should be eaten once in a blue moon.”

Verdict: A little lighter — calorie-wise — than their meaty cousins. But veggie “street meat” is still a sodium shocker.

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